Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI): Most Common Cause of Disability in Kids

posted on Nov 09 by Sherri in the Disability News, Health, Healthcare, Traumatic Brain Injury category

Last month, AMS Wheelchair Vans brought you information about the new test that diagnoses hidden traumatic brain injuries by looking for the protein biomarkers in the blood, in the similar mode that is used to diagnose a heart attack (see: “New Blood Test to Diagnose Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)”). This month, we would like to call attention to the importance of spotting and treating traumatic brain injuries in children.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that at least 3.17 million Americans currently have a long-term or lifelong need for help to perform activities of daily living as a result of a traumatic brain injury. TBI is officially the number one cause of acquired disability among children. Kids up to age 4 have the highest rate of emergency room visits for traumatic brain injuries and when combined with kids up to 14, they make up about one-third of the sufferers. Almost half a million (473,947) emergency department visits for TBI are made annually by children aged 0 to 14 years. In every age group across the board, TBI rates in males are always much higher than in females, with males aged 0 to 4 years having the highest rates of TBI-related emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and deaths.

Awareness about traumatic brain injuries in returning soldiers from Iraq and Afghanistan along with high profile professional athletes has increased the number of TBI visits to the emergency room in recent years. On first glance at the numbers, this upward trend would seem disconcerting. Doctors at the Centers for Disease Control believe, however, that the increase is actually a good sign, because it shows that more parents are bringing their children in for early diagnosis after the child receives an injury to the head.

“TBI is the signature injury associated with the wars and we suspect more people are going and getting themselves looked at,” said Dr. Mark Faul, a behavior scientist with the CDC. “We believe there is more awareness.”

The CDC has also been playing a crucial role in helping to “craft the thinking” of lawmakers to take all head injuries seriously, from concussions to more serious trauma. The push seems to be working. In many states, schools are finally starting to ban kids from returning to games after they have received a blow to the head. More progressive-thinking states are taking that one step further and considering the possibility of getting public schools to test students for a baseline cognitive assessment before a brain injury occurs to have a comparison readily available in case of TBI. Because teachers and daycare workers are often the first to notice changes in a child’s personality, attention or cognitive function, they are quite often the first to call attention to possible undiagnosed head injuries.

Of course, using helmets on bikes and in other athletics crucial is crucial to the prevention of head injuries, but accidents still happen. For that reason, it’s just as important for parents, teachers and athletic trainers to be able to identify symptoms of mild traumatic brain injury, or concussions, such as dizziness, blurred vision, confusion, ringing in the ears and mood changes, in order to seek medical attention quickly. The key to getting the fullest recovery after a traumatic brain injury comes from receiving immediate treatment and early intervention therapy. It can often take the the first few weeks of recovery to determine the extent of the damage after the incident and that extent will determine how long the recovery may be, as well as how well the child ultimately will fare.

In addition to the physical damage, medical costs are generally quite high for traumatic brain injury, about $56 billion a year, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Many of the survivors need extensive physical, occupational and speech-language therapy, cognitive and psychiatric care, and sometimes even social support for the rest of their lives. TBI can cause a wide range of functional changes affecting thinking, language, learning, emotions, behavior, and/or sensation. Other medical issues can also be caused by a brain injury, such as epilepsy, as well as an increased risk for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, and other brain disorders that only become more apparent with age.

The Brain Injury Association of Utah has posted a great documentary online that thoroughly covers TBI awareness for Head Start Providers, but the video contains vital information for all parents and teachers. Please watch part one of “In Harm’s Way” below and then be sure to visit their YouTube channel for the additional parts.